'A Wizard of Earthsea' by Urula K. Le Guin

A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin (4.0)

There is something haunting about many of Ms. Le Guin’s novels. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but the feeling stays with you for a long time. Many have called this the precursor to the Harry Potter novels. I would note a big difference is that while Harry is a very likable protagonist, who denies his own importance, here we have Ged, who comes across with a large dose of youthful hubris that gets him in deep trouble. We follow Ged as he travels to the wizard school to learn how to use his powers. As with Potter, we meet interesting teachers, the school is hidden from mere mortals and Ged immediately makes enemies. The surprise in this book is how quickly Ged gets his comeuppance, which leads to a very dark the second half of the book.  That being said, I enjoyed reading the first novel that has inspired so many that followed and appreciated the symbolism and darkness.

'Where the Crawdads Sing' by Delia Owens

Where the Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens (3.0)

Maybe my disappointment with this book has something to do with the anticipation of reading one of the most talked about books last year. But I’ll wager it has more to do with the uneven writing, implausible premise and really annoying ending. The story is of a very young girl growing up, basically on her own in the deep marsh of North Carolina. There is love, mystery and a lot of sadness. I give it a 3.0 as I did find it was a very compelling story – even with the implausible premise – I wanted to uncover the mystery. That just overcomes the stereotypical characters and clunky clues. The most well written parts of the book are the depictions of nature (both flora and fauna), which makes sense, as Ms. Owens is a wildlife scientist by profession.

'Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster' by Adam Higgenbotham

Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World’s Greatest Nuclear Disaster, Adam Higgenbotham (5.0)

I found this book fascinating and essential if you are a human living on this earth! Full disclosure: I was a fan of nuclear power and I still am – if treated with the respect and safety it deserves – which clearly was not the case in Chernobyl.  Much of what I believed was true about the accident seems to be propaganda. As we move farther from the times of the USSR, more data became available.  Mr. Higgenbotham spent 10 years interviewing many of the original players in the event – or their families. Here the author has described a horrible, complicated disaster as a powerful story of the effect of science and politics tragically intertwined.  My reading of this book coincided with the recent (alleged) nuclear missile explosion that occurred in Russian. As with Chernobyl, the data coming from Russia concerning deaths and radiation levels changes daily. Interesting that the current regime in Russia has been known to harken back fondly to the good old days of the Soviet Union. Given what happened before, during and after the accident in Chernobyl, we should be worried.

'Winter Hours' by Mary Oliver

Winter Hours, Mary Oliver (4.0)

Since I’ve never been a big poetry reader, I’m unfamiliar with our most famous poets. Luckily I was introduced to the writings of Mary Oliver, often lauded and bemoaned as an ‘accessible’ poet. After reading ‘Winter Hours’, a mixture of poetry and prose, I decided I was just fine with that accessibility. I particularly enjoyed that she described what she thought good poetry should do and followed with her poem, ‘The Swan’, that illustrated the points. The introduction announces that the elements of the book are all based on her experience, so generally autobiographical, and it felt true to a personality type. I particularly liked the Sand Dab section (‘a small, boney, not very significant but well-put-together fish’) of aphorisms such as: ‘When men sell their souls, where do the souls go?’  It was a short enough book with quite a few beautiful, memorable passages for me to recommend whether you are a fan of poetry or not.

'Nine Stories' by J.D. Salinger

Nine Stories, J.D. Salinger (4.0)

I first read these short stories many years ago. Frankly, I didn’t ‘get’ them. I wanted to reread them with my wiser old brain and see if my life experience helped me – the answer is ‘yes’. While I didn’t enjoy them all, I can now appreciate the nuance and mastery of language. Given the time frame, late 1940’s, several of the stories have to do with PTSD after WWII. What was morose for me in my youth, now reads as poignant. Most of the nine also include children. Salinger has a unique voice for a child that feels very authentic. Much of his language is memorable. Here are two of my favorite passages: ‘..the most singular difference between happiness and joy is that happiness is a solid and joy is a liquid’  and ‘Poets are always taking the weather so personally. They’re always sticking their emotions in things that have no emotions.’  My two favorite stories are ‘For Esme – with Love and Squalor’ and ‘Teddy’.